Marcel Petiot: French Serial Killer Who Murdered Jews Under Nazi Occupation

World History: True Stories of the 20th Century · Mar 30, 2026 · 15m

Marcel Petiot, a French serial killer posing as a resistance helper, used Nazi-occupied France to lure victims and murder them under the guise of escape. Marcel Petiot remains one of the most disturbing figures to emerge from France’s wartime history—a man who used the chaos of occupation, the trust of frightened civilians, and the secrecy of resistance networks to commit a series of murders that shocked the nation. Born in 1897 in Auxerre, Petiot grew up displaying troubling behavior, including theft, manipulation, and a pattern of evading responsibility through psychiatric defenses. After…